- Date
- December 3, 1989, 12:00 local (19:00 UTC)
- Place
- Powderville, MT
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- No damage
- Phase of flight
- Standing
- Aircraft
- N62672Piper PA-18-150
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 26, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19891203049939A
- Case key
- 17873
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The NTSB’s determination of the probable cause, and any contributing factors.
The pilot in command left the airplane unattended with the engine running. That the pilot's son did not understand the unsafe condition is considered a contributing factor.
Analysis
The private pilot and his 8 yr old son had completed a local flight. The pilot left the plane with the engine running to open a gate to taxi to his hangar, on his ranch airstrip. With out the plt's knowledge, his son exited the airplane and was fatally injured when he walked into the propeller arc.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N62672
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18-150
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 187809104
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-A2B, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- No damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- W. L. Ranch Company
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Airport
- NONE
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 46
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 1,265 total · 1,246 in this make and model · 25 in the last 90 days · 8 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 50 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 50 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N62672 · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.